


I Know

by thatanonwiththeoc



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: But they're kept this time don't worry, Chat's Soft Look™, Cheek Kisses, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Gratuitous use of monologuing to make the fluff sweeter, Gratuitous use of platonic cliches, LadyNoir - Freeform, Light Angst, Platonic "I love you"s, Promises, Three ways Ladybug loves Chat, Tight Embraces/Hugs, anyway the new york special gave me all the food and now im back on my garbage, post new york special
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-27
Updated: 2020-09-27
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:55:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26674009
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thatanonwiththeoc/pseuds/thatanonwiththeoc
Summary: Ladybug never thought she could ever have lost Chat Noir.Yet one overseas trip later, she finds herself mentally keeping track of everything he does that she couldn't imagine herself living without.It's a dangerous spiral, but one she needs.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 30
Kudos: 175





	I Know

**Author's Note:**

> new york special spoilers if you haven't watched it already!

The saying was that one should always count their blessings.

Marinette knew of the principle behind it. The idea of making sure to always keep account of the things and people that kept her going; people she needed. She’d be lying to herself if she said she wasn’t at least thankful for at least a few things of her life. Of the friends she had, the memories she held dear to her heart, the opportunities she was given thanks to her dumb strokes of luck that somehow presented themselves to her with little to no warning. By all means, she could go on and on about all the little treasures life had given her along the way if someone had asked her.

She just didn’t know when she actually started  _ counting. _

Number one happened in an empty alleyway in New York. She’d done her best to keep a brave face, remain as the superhero the city needed for the time being. A force of habit from almost two years of neverending onslaught from a frustratingly persistent supervillain.

She’d turned to her side and expected to see her kitty looking back at her, waiting to execute their usual plan for the akuma. Sometimes, she’d be lucky enough to hear him crack a pun or two if the world would be oh so kind.

Instead, she was met with an unfamiliar cloth mask, hiding behind a pair of brown-orange goggles. She hesitated for almost half a second before she remembered she had a job to do. There was a supervillain loose on the streets, and a dozen rogue heroes wreaking havoc on the city they once stood proudly to protect. New York needed Ladybug and Sparrow at that moment, and it wouldn’t help to be grieving over a partner she didn’t have anymore.

Still, something inside her knew all too well of the lack of blonde hair and kitty ears beside her. The silky smooth voice that would drop a much needed joke (when the time called for it). Somewhere in the back of her mind, she began to second guess herself. What if something happened and Uncanny Valley hadn’t managed to get the ring back to Chat Noir and she really  _ did _ lose her one and only partner forever? Her best friend. Her kitty. There would be no going back for her, and the thought sent a pang through her chest so much more painful than any akuma she’d ever fought.

Then she heard his voice.

_ Chat’s _ voice.

“That would explain his power upgrade.” He said. She turned in the direction of the person that she thought she’d never see again. A smile that almost left her forever. “Good insight, m’lady.” She didn’t even wait for him to finish his sentence before she sprinted across the alleyway towards him.

Ladybug wrapped her arms around him and held him so close. She closed her eyes and breathed in his scent, filling all of her senses with  _ him. _ “Don’t ever do that to me again.” She said into his shoulder.

She didn’t know so much relief could come from a fist bump.

* * *

Marinette counted blessing number two on the very same day she came back to Paris.

Her eyes drooped from the overnight flight, and her back yearned for some kind of rest against the strain of her muscles when she yanked hard on her yoyo across the rooftops. The sun was too bright against her eyes, and the blue sky that usually brought her so much life was so annoyingly blue she wanted to curse whatever entity’s idea it was to give the earth an atmosphere in the first place.

But no matter how badly her body begged for her to get some much needed sleep, her heart and mind yearned to go back to her kitty and see how he was doing back in Paris. It wasn’t so bad to indulge in some bonus quality time with her partner, was it?

Chat Noir was waiting for her on a high rooftop, overlooking the city down to the blurry skyline in the distance. He chose a specific rooftop that gave them an absolutely perfect view of the city below them. She took in a deep breath and let it fill her lungs. A little bit of tension left her body, and she felt a feather lighter than before.

He turned towards her with his usual flair that she missed so  _ much. _ “Enjoying the view, bugaboo?” He got up from his sitting position on the ledge and flexed his biceps, all while swaying his hips. “I’m  _ feline _ I should be charging you for a view like this.”

Ladybug tiredly snorted as she made her way towards the ledge and plopped down, her legs swinging in the air below. Chat sat down next to her, their shoulders barely touching. Just his presence next to hers was enough to soothe her fragile soul from the wild ride she’d been on in the past week.

She turned her gaze towards his, having to look up at a bit of an awkward angle due to their difference in height. He teased her for a good week when he got his first growth spurt, and she didn’t dare let him know it actually annoyed her. One thing worse than a tall Chat was a tall Chat that had a fed ego.

When they made eye contact, he raised his brow in a silent question.

Wordlessly, she relaxed her shoulders and leaned her head on Chat’s shoulder. She felt more than heard him seize up for a fraction of a moment before he relaxed. Silly, flustered kitty.

Chat leaned his head against hers and emitted a low hum that resonated through her. “You feeling okay?” He said.

“Mmm, just peachy.” Ladybug gave a weak thumbs up, still too busy enjoying the warmth to open her eyes. He chuckled lightly, the movement jostling her the tiniest bit despite how she wished he’d stay still. It looked like he caught on to the hint that she wasn’t anywhere near a state for much conversation, so he stayed quiet for the rest of their time there. She paid more attention to the way his chest rose and fell to the rhythm of his breathing, and the way he sighed in peace every so often. Each detail a proof that he was still here, breathing the same air as her and by her side despite everything. Her second half. Her partner.

Her best friend.

* * *

The third time was, well…

The third time was the day after.

The ladybugs had finished cleansing the last of The Deconstructor’s damage. Thankfully, not any more than the standard collateral of a few buildings. Paris absolutely didn’t need anymore unnecessary reconstruction work.

Ladybug turned to Chat and they bumped fists.

“Pound it!”

And then, he did something he always did.

He smiled at her.

A smile that creased at the edges of his green, green eyes. A look that was filled with so much adoration and love that it made her heart melt and her soul clench with so much feeling and emotion that it threatened to burst at the seams.

In his eyes, she saw so much. So much of  _ him. _ Like she could see the boy behind the mask for the first time, yet she saw someone that she’d known for a lifetime. She saw her partner and best friend that she trusted with her life. She saw a boy who tried his hardest in whatever he did, and despite everything was still here to show it. She saw someone that she’d accidentally hurt by saying words that she didn’t mean.

Even then, all he did was make a bad decision. And even though it made her upset beyond words, she still trusted and loved him more than anything in her life. She couldn’t imagine being Ladybug without him as her partner. She couldn’t imagine being without him in general.

He was a boy who made mistakes, but he was still here for her.

_ Still here for her. _

When she wrapped her arms around his neck in a tight embrace, Chat stumbled back a bit from the sudden momentum.

“Ladybug?” He asked, but it was too late. The waterworks were leaking and she couldn’t help the light sniffles that she tried to muffle in the crook of his neck. It wasn’t long before Chat’s own arms came to wrap around her figure, enveloping her in his sweet hold.

He tried to hush her soft sobs. “What’s up, bug?”

It took a minute before she was able to respond, her own heart betraying her and not letting her breath at a regular rhythm. The only thing she  _ could _ control was how tight she held him against her body, and from the way her inner self screamed at her to hold him close, the self control there was waning too.

When her breathing evened out, she managed to croak out a single sentence.

“I’m so glad to have you with me.” She muttered into his neck, so quiet that even she could barely hear it. “Don’t you dare ever leave me again.”

She felt him let out a breath. “It’s okay.” He said, his voice taking on a husky quality. “You can’t get rid of me that easily.”

Though the words were somewhat playful, the way he said it sounded a tiny bit sad, almost somewhat self-deprecating from the sound of it. That simply wouldn’t do.

She pulled her head away swiftly from the safety of his neck, still keeping herself in his arms as she planted her lips against his cheek in a quick kiss, the feeling of his skin on her lips leaving a light tingle. “I mean it.” She said. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.” Resting her forehead against his temple, she whispered.

“I love you.”

It wasn’t the romantic beginning he’d probably been hoping for after the few years they’d worked together, they both knew that. She couldn’t imagine how much he’d longed to hear those words come from her. But it was something that needed to be said. It wasn’t a confession, but a plea, a question, a  _ promise. _

There wasn’t anyone else that could’ve replaced him. He was her one and only Chat Noir. There wouldn’t be anyone else to help when she was down, to tell her jokes that made her laugh. No one else that she could stay up with at 3am after a late night akuma attack, both of them not regretting it one bit the day after despite the nauseating drowsiness their poor decision making caused. No one else that she could see herself making stupid bets with. No one else that she could imagine by her side when the worst dangers were facing against her. It was only him.

It could only be him.

Chat.

And from what happened the past few days, he knew that too.

“I love you too, Ladybug.” He kissed her cheek, “m’lady.” He held her closer in his arms. “I won’t leave you, I promise.” A pause, then he leaned his cheek against her temple. “I can’t imagine being Chat Noir without you either.”

Ladybug smiled softly into his skin. “I know.”

She felt more than heard the way his chest shook in a silent chuckle.

Even as the moment passed, Marinette refused to let him go. She held onto him as tight as she could get in the hug, trying to show him how much he meant to her. How much he  _ was _ to her. Every single drop of affection she had for her kitty,  _ every single one, _ she tried to give him. In the way she lightly nuzzled her cheek against his shoulder. In the way her fingertips lightly stroked the hairs that ended at the nape of his neck. In the way she lightly stepped so she was standing on top of his metal boots.

A soft purr could be heard only between the two of them.

Eventually, she broke the silence. “Hey.” She said, bringing her head back to meet his gaze, his own face mere centimetres from hers and her own stare still a bit glassy from tears. “You feel like a patrol?”

Chat tilted his head. “Right now?”

“Right now.” She said, nodding and smiling in a friendly challenge.

He began to glow so bright it could rival all of the brightest stars that he’d taught her about on their nightly strolls. His lips parted to show slightly crooked teeth, and his green eyes overflowed with a warmth so bare and true that she felt her chest spill open again.

Chat brought his hand from around her waist to take hers in his own as he kissed her knuckles.

“M’lady, I would be honored.”

Maybe it was the lack of sleep, but Ladybug found that she absolutely did not mind the gesture at all. In fact, she kind of liked it.

Maybe she was more tired than she thought.

**Author's Note:**

> tumblr: [thatanonwiththeoc](https://thatanonwiththeoc.tumblr.com/)


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